Larry loves Snow and so do I!

It looks like snow is on the way.  Will you put on your red boots?  Let's go out and play.

This is great!  Tail up!

I love SNOW!

                                                                                

                                                                              Masked!

No Name Yet

Oil on Canvas

 30 x 40

I love snow because I got a day off.  I got to play with Larry and finish this painting.  Well, I think it's finished.  It might get a little tweaking here and there.

and What?

This image wouldn't come up for the last post so it's flying solo.

This started as a demo with my AP Studio Art for a media play day using acrylics.  I added some newspaper, inda ink, and oil pastels.  Some areas of the surface are textured with gesso and then parts are scraped away.  All to get the kids to loosen up and play!  Experience the media.  It worked, the students produced some nice, loose images--no preconceived ideas or expectations.

Boxed In, Bobwhite Quail and What?

I call this one Boxed In (how I felt).  This started as a demo piece for Media Play Day in my AP Studio Art class.  We were messing around with acrylics that day, I ended up adding india ink and oil pastels.  What began as shapes, mark making and color applications led to this image.  It had been a very full and hectic couple of weeks and I was beginning to feel boxed in to the point where tension was settling in my shoulder blades---Not good!  Thankfully artmaking is always therapeutic and such a release.  Often revealing the truth!

This afternoon when I took the dog out, we came across four of these beautiful Bobwhite Quail in the yard.  This is only the second time I've seen them on this property in our 14 years here.  Two male, two female. 

When I came inside I got a phone call from a person who had bought one of my paintings several years ago.  He came across my card in his desk, looked up to where my painting was hanging, picked up the phone to call me and tell me how much he enjoys looking at the painting. What a great thing to do and on my end, so nice to hear!

The "and What? " section will have to be a ?. Blogger isn't letting me upload the last image. 

Until next post.....

A Field Trip, an Exhibit at the Local Hospital

 Another teacher and I took a group of students on a field trip to the flats area of Cleveland.  Some were photo students and others were AP Studio Art students.  The kids took photos and did some sketching.  In the spirit of the day, I brought along my camera and played at being a "photographer".

A sampling of my exhibit at Geauga County Hospital.  There are a total of 24 paintings hanging and it looks wonderful.  The work is hanging in a main corridor of the hospital; so it's getting plenty of viewing.  I've gotten positive feedback on the show, so far!

Marblehead, Ohio~~Lakeside

Lake Erie Through the Trees

Oil on Panel  2010

6 x 8

This is the view I painted last Sunday morning at the Marblehead Peninsula during the Ohio Plein Air Society Paintout.  As mentioned in the last post, it took me a while to get in my groove, and I'm not sure if I ever really did.  I loosened up by the time I got to this painting, (after a good night's sleep which helped the head cold turn the corner), but not to where I wanted to be. 

Oh well.  C'est la vie. 

It was still beneficial practice learning to paint the colors of Lake Erie and so great to be with other painters.

HW Farber asked me what cornhole is in reference to the last post.  Ahhh. Cornhole.  How to explain it.  For those of you who don't know what it is and those of you who do and would like some mild enternainment courtesy of my brother then you might like to visit here. 

I'm not entirely sure where the game started, maybe southern Ohio.  Very popular on college campuses, tailgating parties and parties in general.  It is lots of fun, even the atheletically challenged (me) can play.  It's just tossing a bean bag at a board with a hole in it. 1 point if the bag lands on the board, 3 for getting it in the hole.  Play usually goes to 21.

Enjoy the video!

Phew! It's been a long time!

Looking Toward Kelley's Island from Marblehead

Sept. 2010 Oil on Panel

6 x 8

It seems like ages since the last post, well...it has been a long time!  So much has been goin' on that I don't know where to start. 

In my little art world...I've taken a show down and put another one up.  The new show is at our local hospital; Geauga County Hospital.  The show is a part of what is called Art in the Mart which is a partnership between the Geauga Council for Arts and Culture and the hospital, along with a few other locations in the county.  The set up at the hospital is great.  The show space is in a main hallway, it is well lit and the hanging apparatus worked beautifully.  The show went up like a breeze thanks to the wonderful help from the maintenance staff at the hospital.  Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera the day the show was hung, I'll get back over there soon, take some pics to share here.  I think it looks great!

I spent this past weekend at the Marblehead Peninsula on Lake Erie where I participated in a Paint Out sponsored by the Ohio Plein Air Society.  I arrived tired and with a head cold.  The first day of painting generated some ho-hum results.  The painting above is the third of the day, I was getting into my groove.  The challenge was working with a new color pallette, Lake Erie isn't my normal subject matter!  But the colors of the water were beautiful....grey greens, orangey yellows, it was fun just to mix the colors, put them down, then look up and see something new, something that had changed.

Sunday morning, I was rested and produced a better painting.  No picture right now, but will take one soon.

OPAS does a great job sponsoring the paintouts.  Lots of recognition for the artists who attended, about 50 or more.  Monetary awards with a nice awards ceremony. I met and re-met a number of other painters. People attended from all over the state and even neighboring states.  Its reassuring to meet others like me! (us!)  Just hangin' out talking paint, easels, pochade boxes, admiring various paintings, you know--art stuff.

 

On the home front, we had our annual party, which entails lots of prep, lots of people, a cornhole tournament, yummy food (last year it was a pig roast), and lots and lots of fun.  This year we turned it into a fundraiser for St. Augustine's Church  which is the church my parents belonged to and several of my siblings are members.  The church is known for its outstanding service to the people of Cleveland.  They run a hunger center, minister to the deaf community, among countless other services to help people.  I'm happy to say we had a great turnout, we threw a raffle into the mix, charged an entry fee, had live music and raised a nice donation for St. Augustine's.

Okay, enough!

Pics of more paintings next time!

Yellow Sky

 

I painted this about a week and a half ago, it seems like another lifetime.

The days have been full since school started.

Once the routine settles in, I'll get out and paint some autumn scenes. 

For now there's this.  A sunset over a pond at Orchard Hills Park.  The sky started as a pale blue, but as the light changed it morphed to yelllow.  So beautiful.

So much to paint!

These are all 6 x 8 plein air paintings.  Most were completed in about an hour, give or take.

The negative space quest continues. When I pay strong attention to negative space, I am being visually challenged and stimulated.  Wolf Kahn talks about bringing the background spaces forward,  and playing with the balance between near and far spaces.  

ahhhh.  it's so exciting and all makes so much sense!

Where I've been, where I'll be.

Since I started blogging my posts have been sporadic, sometimes I can post regularly and other times I post infrequently.  Right now is an infrequent time. 

Summer.  Usually the time I can post alot.  Not so this year. 

I've been working on Curriculum writing. 2-4 hours for the last two weeks. Hopefully just one more week.  (tedium)

                                                                  where else and what else?

hangin' out with this little guy.

the laundry.

we're building the deck for the barn/studio.  Yaaaay!!

and then there's the garden.  growin' like crazy!

If I don't post...I'll be in the studio

or

painting

or

starting new paintings.

(just made arrangements to do a solo exhibit at our local hospital for this fall)

yikes!  lots to paint and thankfully I've got lots of ideas!

While I may not post for a while, I'll be visiting your blogs, checking out what's happening in your lives and with your art!

A Peak at the Exhibit at The Flying Monkey Pub~New Landscape Paintings

Last Friday was the Tremont Art Walk.  I have 19 works on exhibit at The Flying Monkey Pub.  What's fun about the Tremont Art Walk is that every business is open for the event.  Art is everywhere, restaurants, pubs, galleries and shops.  It was a warm, beautiful night and Tremont was packed with people.  A bunch of us got together to see my work, have some fun and walk around a bit.  Here's a sampling of some of my work that is hanging. It will hang until August 10th.  If you're in Cleveland, or already live in the area, stop by and see the show. 

New Puppy, New Painting

Larry the Dog Sedivy

Last year in February we said goodbye to our best dog,  Woody after spending 15 wonderful years together.  It took a year or so before we began to think of  having a dog around, although we still missed him.  So much.

My daughter and I have been visiting the local shelters for a few months. Nothing grabbed our hearts.  Then we met Larry.  (His siblings were Curly and Mo). 

He's been with us for a week and he is working his way into our hearts and home with all his puppy cuteness and personality.  I've got a big space in my heart where Woody rests, but its funny how hearts work.  Ours have opened up with ease and made space for this little guy. 

Soft Morning

36 x 42

Oil on Canvas

Last year I worked on a commission which I struggled with the during the entire process.  Nothing ever rang true, although I tried to convince myself otherwise.  So, after the buyer wasn't interested in it, I covered it in red and waited for inspiration.  Which came while I was out birding one soft morning.  The day was foggy, soft and gorgeous.  I took lots of reference photos.  

This is what I came up with.

It's leaving tomorrow to hang in a solo exhibition in Tremont.  (nice arty area in Cleveland)

And on that note, gotta run.....so much to do for the show!

Loosening Up

Orchard Hills Park

6 x 8

Oil on Panel

Since summer vacation started I've gone out to the local parks to do some Plein Air painting.  Each time out has been totally wonderful.  I try to arrive around 7:30 or so and spend a few hours painting.  Last time I painted two panels, with this one being the better of the two.

Last year I painted this:

I liked it for a while.  Then I didn't.  The composition really started bugging me.  I loved the colors, the brushwork, but otherwise...blech.  So I decided to do a paint over the other day.  I zoomed in on the Orchard Hills painting.

Orchard Hills

Oil on Canvas

24 x 24

Now this, I really LOVE.  Loosening up is soooo good.

Some details:

This is color I could just Eat!

Summer Vaca has started and I've hit the ground Running

                                                                Orchard Hills 6 x 8
                                                                                          oil on panel

Where to begin?  It's been so long since I've posted and there's so much to share and say.  For now I'll share a few pics of some little paintings I worked on this week.  The scenes were painted in a few different parks within the Geauga Park District.  What has been intriquing and of great importance to me lately has been negative space.  How it is used in an artwork.  I love the abstract shapes that negative space creates.

                                                                                        Orchard Hills  6 x 8
                                                                                            Oil on Panel

It was fun to mush the sky up against the trees and to paint the pinks behind the trees.

Swine Creek Park  6 x 8

Oil on Panel

This started as a demo piece, waterbased oils on panel.  I reworked it a smidge this morning (the demo was on Monday night) putting regular oils over the waterbased oils.  Which works just fine.  I also turned the painting upside down when I worked back into it.  (I revisited this idea courtesy of a friend who often paints her work upside down--she's not standing on her head, the work is upside down :) ) 

                                                                    The Rookery 6 x 8
                                                                                               Oil on panel

This is a painting from last summer that I was never felt was complete.  So, since I was turning paintings upside down, this one was flipped and worked into.  It's more intense than before, the colors and paint is getting nice and juicey.

Soft Morning

 

Sunday morning birdwatching in a dense fog which formed a soft, muted landscape.

This gorgeous property (owned by Case Western Reserve University; a bio-field station of sorts) is about 15 minutes from my house and I've been interested in visiting it for quite a while, in hopes to find some new painting inspiration.When I was invited to bird there, I was quick to say yes.  We didn't see many birds because of the fog, but we heard many. The morning was spent being totally enthralled with the mists and fog (must be my celtic roots), enjoying the good company of fellow birdwatchers and when the sun broke through...well, then we did see birds, birds and more birds!

Oh, I'll go back to paint this summer.  Eight more days of school!!

Portals

oil pastel on chip board

Colours are the wounds of Light ~ William Blake

as the anniversary date of my mother's passing (through her portal) arrives, i remember and miss her on this mother's day.  (and all days)

the other portal, the doorway through which my father passed.

thankful to both of them for passing on the gifts. 

For the love and mystery of Birds.

What started as a demo for a small face sculpture for my Ceramics One students evolved into this.  It is part self portrait, not the bird part.  I put the fingers and the crow on the piece to show the students ideas for adding other "stuff" to a face.  I chose a crow because of the crows flying around outside the ceramics room window and because of my post in March about Crows. 

The front of the face cracked off in the bisque fire.  A fine example to the students of "do what I say, not do what I do"!  I'm always cautioning them about hatching and slipping their work well and letting pieces dry thoroughly before we fire them.

But, as it turns out I like the cracked face and so did the students. A lesson learned in allowing mistakes/accidents to work for you.

For the assignment students were to integrate the front and back of the sculpture by making a connection with words, poetry, lyrics, a quote or any other way they could think of.  This quote is from a book called The Poets Guide to the Birds, edited by Judith Ketchen and Ted Kooser.